Sandy Hook victims' families urge gun reform

Published 5:26 pm, Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Editor's note: This letter was provided to Connecticut General Assembly leaders Monday as a call for comprehensive gun legislation. It was signed by family members of 11 students and educators who died in the shootings at the school on Dec. 14. The General Assembly is scheduled to vote on the historic legislation Wednesday.

Dear Senators and State Representatives,

We, the parents of children killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School together with the parents and spouses of educators killed that day in Newtown, are writing today regarding gun legislation currently under consideration by Connecticut's legislature.

We are grateful for your leadership on this issue and for the efforts of the Bipartisan Task Force on Gun Violence Prevention and Children's Safety to craft a comprehensive package of legislation to keep our communities and children safer from violence.

We feel strongly, however, that the current proposed action on large capacity ammunition magazines is inadequate and must be strengthened.

We feel a very personal connection to this issue.

The Sandy Hook shooter carried 10 magazines that held 30 bullets each. We now know that he left many smaller magazines at home. He fired 154 shots in approximately 4 minutes, killing 20 children and 6 educators.

Miraculously, in the time that it took him to reload in one of the classrooms, 11 children were able to escape and are alive today.

We are left to wonder, what if the Sandy Hook shooter had been forced to reload not 6 times but 15 times. Would more children, would our children, be alive today?

The current proposal under consideration in Hartford would allow the sale of magazines with a capacity of 10 bullets or fewer. The proposal, however, grandfathers existing large capacity magazines leaving a gaping loophole on, what we believe, is the most dangerous feature of an assault weapon.

Individuals will easily be able to purchase high capacity magazines in other states, bring them to Connecticut and claim to have owned them before the law took effect. Proving that the purchase or transfer took place postenactment will be difficult, if not impossible.

Additionally, the "grandfathered" possession of large capacity magazines is not in the public interest and exposes our communities to an unacceptable risk of additional mass shootings.

We must do more.

If there is reason to stop the further sale of magazines that hold more than 10 bullets, a principle with which we wholeheartedly agree, it makes sense to take steps to prevent the potential damage that existing magazines could cause.

How can we not remove large capacity magazines from Connecticut if we know that it might save even one more child or teacher or parent?

On behalf of the loved ones who were violently taken from us, please reconsider your approach to large capacity magazines as part of the comprehensive package of gun legislation.